Trypanosoma cruzi Infection in Rhodnius pallescens (Heteroptera: Reduviidae) Infesting Coyol Palms in the Dry Arch of Panamá.

Ecoepidemiological scenarios for Trypanosoma cruzi Chagas transmission are partially shaped by kissing bug vector ecology. The presence of Attalea butyracea Kunth, the 'royal palm', is a major risk factor for Chagas disease transmission in Panamá given their frequent infestations by Rhodnius pallescens Barber, a major neotropical T. cruzi vector. It was assumed that in Panamá this relationship was very close and unique, limiting the niche of R. pallescens to that of Att. butyracea. However, here we present observations about T. cruzi-infected R. pallescens infesting coyol palms, Acrocomia aculeata Jacquin, in Pedasí district, Los Santos Province, Panamá. Between May 2015 and August 2016, we sampled kissing bugs from 83 coyol palms using mice-baited traps placed at the crown of each palm during the dry and wet season. We collected 62 R. pallescens and one Eratyrus cuspidatus Stål kissing bugs. Using logistic regression, we found that the probability of kissing bug infestation in coyol palms increased during the rainy season, with infructescence number and palm height. We examined adult R. pallescens bugs (n = 30) and found T. cruzi in 67% of the samples. We were able to isolate and characterize T. cruzi from parasites present in the feces from R. pallescens, all parasites belonging to the TC I lineage. We found that green fronds number and house proximity increased T. cruzi infection probability in kissing bugs collected in coyol palms. These results highlight coyol palms as a potential risk factor for Chagas disease transmission in the dry arch of Panamá.